


The Performing Arts

by YumeArashi



Series: The Hot Topic Arc [3]
Category: Matantei Loki Ragnarok | Mythical Detective Loki Ragnarok
Genre: Explicit Sexual Content, Exploring Sexuality, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Humor, M/M, Masturbation, Possessive Behavior, Seduction, Shame, Trust Issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-20
Updated: 2013-01-20
Packaged: 2017-11-26 04:26:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,546
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/646554
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YumeArashi/pseuds/YumeArashi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The sequel to "The Center Of Attention". Loki and Heimdall put their plan into action.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Performing Arts

**Author's Note:**

> Part 3 and final of the Hot Topic Arc. Needless to say, all characters are in adult forms!

“Yamino-kun, could you please see to it that we’re not disturbed?  Oh, and if Freyr or Freya comes by, you’ve not seen either of us all evening.”

“Of course, Loki-sama.”  Yamino retreated with somewhat less than his usual grace, still blushing faintly.  On the two gods’ arrival at Loki’s home, the bespectacled young man had taken one look at the Goth-clad deity and turned bright scarlet.  Heimdall wasn’t sure if he should find this amusing or annoying, but given his day thus far, he was leaning towards the latter.

“You look like you’ve had a rough day,” Loki commented, taking a sip of his tea.  Heimdall eyed the trickster god suspiciously, wondering if he was being mocked, but the other deity’s expression was one of sincere commiseration.  He shrugged noncommittally.

“Do you mind if I ask how you came to be the owner of such a flattering, if uncharacteristic, outfit?”

Heimdall snorted.  “You mean, why am I dressed like a cheap male whore?”  Loki choked on his tea, causing his companion to smirk.  Heimdall waited for the other god to finish sputtering, then related the tale of his adventure in Hot Topic.  Loki made a mental note to find out who this ‘Anita’ person was and send her a nice thank you note and some flowers.  Roses, maybe.

“It was amusing walking down the mall and watching everyone stare, but now I’m seriously regretting the whole thing.”  The purple-haired god looked thoroughly disgusted, and Loki made an appropriately sympathetic noise.

“The admiration of others can be a two-edged sword indeed.”

“Mmm.”  Heimdall leaned back against the couch, looking somewhat less tense than he had when he’d entered.  Which was a good thing, in Loki’s opinion.  Things would be much easier if the other god was in a more relaxed state of mind.  Almost apologetically, he brought up the subject at hand.

“So, about Freya...”

Heimdall shuddered.  “Can’t you just seal her in one of your mirrors for a few thousand years?”

Loki attempted to cover his laughter with a faked cough, without much success.  “I somehow think that would be inadvisable.  Entertaining, perhaps, but inadvisable.”

The violet-haired god regarded his companion suspiciously.  “You do realize that if this brilliant plan of yours fails, then I’m going to kill you in a spectacularly unpleasant fashion.”

“I had figured as much, yes.  One doesn’t appreciate the loss of one’s dignity in vain sacrifice.  But that’s irrelevant - this will work.  And I will endeavor to get you through it with as much of your dignity intact as possible.”

Heimdall eyed Loki narrowly.  “I bet you said the same thing to Thor before you dressed him in a bridal gown, didn’t you?”

“Excuse me, the bridal gown was your idea, thank you very much!”

The watcher god smirked at the other deity’s indignation.  “And one of my better ones.”

Loki, suspecting this was an argument he wouldn’t win, opted to drop the issue.  “This shouldn’t be hard, really.  A few stolen kisses and she’ll get the message.”

“And she’ll just move on?”

“I should think so.  Her attention span was never long.”

Heimdall’s eye narrowed.  “And what if she decides to wait until you lose interest and move on yourself?  You’re hardly noted for your own attention span, you know.  I don’t want to keep up this little charade indefinitely.”

Loki wisely chose not to tell Heimdall that he hoped to change that outlook.  “I’ll handle that.”

“And what exactly do you mean by ‘handle’?”

The trickster god looked mournful.  “No one trusts me.”  Heimdall didn’t bother to dignify that with a response.  Loki sighed.  “I will have a private little chat with Freya wherein I will make it exceedingly clear that I will be unamused by any advances she might make upon your person.”

Heimdall snickered.  “In other words, 'Back off, bitch, he’s mine'?”

Loki allowed himself a small smile.  “Something like that, yes.  I will make it equally clear that there will be no expiration on said claim.  That should keep her at bay at least long enough for her to get bored and seek entertainment elsewhere.  Fair enough?”

The guardian god shrugged.  “I suppose.  As long as I don’t have to get within a hundred yards of her, it sounds good to me.”

“You know, she’s liable to show up on your doorstep unannounced.”

Heimdall grinned and tapped one ear.  “Not unannounced to me.  I’ll hear her coming five miles away and be out the back door long before she comes through the front gate.”

The trickster chuckled.  “You’re luckier than me, then.  If you need a place to hide, you’re always welcome here.  Speaking of which, I thought we’d do this here - when you hear Freya coming, head on over.  If you let Freyr know where you’re going, he’ll tell Freya, and then we’ll just make sure that when she barges in, it’ll be at an inopportune moment.”

“...Have I mentioned that I really don’t like this idea?”

“You have.  Which is why, though I hate to say it, we should probably rehearse this before we try to put it into practice.”

Heimdall glared.  “What do you mean, ‘rehearse’?”

“We’re going to have to put on a very convincing performance.  Freya has quite a bit of experience in this field, she won’t be fooled by a poor act.  This is going to have to look natural if she’s going to believe that it’s for real.”

“So you’re saying that we should practice so that it doesn’t look as if we practiced?”

“I’m saying that if I try to kiss you and you’re stiff and unresponsive, it won’t look very good.”

“What does that matter?  I don’t have to be willing for you to lay a claim on me.”

“Ah, but it doesn’t work that way.  If she thinks you don’t welcome my attentions, she’ll consider that you might prefer hers.”  Heimdall looked skeptical, and Loki sighed.  “Let me put it this way - you’re not considered mine until I’ve won you.  Any possessiveness I may show is simply empty talk unless you have allowed me some claim on you.”

Heimdall considered this.  “So I have to act like I’m enjoying it.”

The trickster god winced a little.  “I suppose that’s rather a lot to ask.  Perhaps we could start with acceptance, and worry about enjoyment later.”

“How about we start with acceptance, and only worry about enjoyment if we really have to?”

Loki sighed.  “Fair enough.  Did you want to get started now, or would you rather wait?”

Heimdall shrugged, looking a little uncomfortable.  “No point in putting things off that I can see.”

Loki shook his head.  “If you need a little more time to get used to the idea, that’s not a problem.”  Better to let Heimdall make the decision, he reflected - the obviously uneasy deity clearly needed to feel in control of the situation.  Besides, he knew that the watcher had enough pride that, given the option to back down, he wouldn’t.

“I’m never going to be comfortable with this idea, no matter how much time you give me.  Let’s just get started.”

The red-headed god grimaced.  “Not sparing my ego any bruises, are you?”

Heimdall smirked.  “Your ego could use some bruising.”

“Thank you for that assessment,” Loki commented dryly, and stood.  “Shall we?”  Heimdall stood as well, shifting his weight from foot to foot restlessly.  “Believe me, I know you don’t really want to be doing this.  But for what it’s worth, I’m not going to hurt you.  That’s a promise.”

Heimdall regarded the unusually serious trickster god for a moment before nodding slowly.  “Understood.”

“All right.  I thought that it might be best if we started off by getting an idea of where we stand.  Rather than trying to act, I’d like to just see your genuine reactions, so I  know where we’re starting from and what we’ll be working with.  Does that make sense?”

“I guess so.”

“So, for now, whatever I do, you react however you want.  Whatever your first, instinctual reaction is, go with it.  Freeze, panic, hit me - anything.  Just act natural, ok?”

Heimdall smirked faintly.  “If it includes hitting you, I can do that.”

Loki sighed again, beginning to question whether this was really worth it.  “Just try not to cause any permanent damage, would you?”

“You’re no fun.”

The redheaded deity ignored that comment.  “I thought we’d start off slow - just a little light contact on the arms, shoulders, and face.  That will let you get used to the idea of being near me before we move on, ok?”

“Ok.”

“If at any time you want me to stop, all you have to do is say so, and I will.  You don’t have to force anything.”

“I understand.”

Loki took a step forward, bringing himself face-to-face with the other god.  Heimdall hesitated momentarily, then took a small step back, putting a little space between them. 

“Not used to having anyone that close to you?”  Heimdall silently shook his head, looking faintly ashamed.  “That’s all right.  That’s the whole point of this exercise - to find the stumbling blocks before we hit them.”  The guardian nodded, not quite meeting the other god’s eyes.  Loki frowned a little and reached across the gap between them to lay a hand on Heimdall’s shoulder.  Already-tense muscles tightened a little, but not much, and Loki nodded to himself.  Carefully, he reached out to touch Heimdall’s face, unsurprised when the other god flinched away.

Softly, he asked, “Do you hate me that much, Heimdall?”

“No, it’s not that, I just...I don’t think I can do this.”

“You’re not used to physical contact.”  Heimdall shook his head, and Loki regarded him sadly.  “Fate always has been cruel to you, hasn’t it?”  The watcher gave his companion a sideways glance, but there was no trace of mockery in the green eyes.  “I’ll be gentle with you.”  Loki pulled the other god into a hug, waiting until the slender body relaxed against him before rubbing soothing circles on his back.  “You can do this.  You don’t have to, if you don’t want to, but you can.”

“No, I’m all right.”

Loki reached up to brush a lock of hair away from the other god’s face, satisfied when Heimdall didn’t flinch this time.  “Do you want to stop for now?” he asked, hoping the answer would be no.

“Stop?  But we haven’t done anything yet.”

“Well, we’ve made some progress.  It’s a start.”

“It’s going to take more than hugging to get Freya to think we’re a couple.”

“True.  I’ll leave it up to you.  If you think you’ll be ok, we can try a kiss or two and see how it goes.”

“Why are you being so solicitous, anyhow?  What do you care whether I’m comfortable with what we’re doing?”

Loki sighed.  “Aren’t we suspicious?  I promised not to hurt you, remember?  That includes a lack of emotional trauma.  Besides, I don’t particularly want you to kill me afterwards.”

Heimdall snorted.  “I’m not going to kill you.  Not over this, at any rate.”

“...You’ll forgive me if I don’t exactly find that comforting.  Are we calling it a day or not?”

“Let’s at least get to kissing before we call it quits.”

“Fair enough.”  The trickster god cupped a hand to the other’s face, running his thumb over the hesitant mouth.  Slowly, he brought their faces together and brushed his lips against Heimdall’s.  There was no response, but he hadn’t expected one, and he simply repeated his actions, gently caressing the mouth beneath his with coaxing softness.

After a few minutes Heimdall began to respond, tentatively mimicking Loki’s actions.  He was inexperienced, of course, but Loki guided him, suppressing a shiver of excitement as he carefully taught the other god to kiss.  Little by little, as the watcher grew more and more responsive, Loki pushed things further, teasing the other god’s mouth open, then darting his tongue to brush against the parted lips.  At each new action, Heimdall would hesitate, faltering a little, but each time the pause was less.

When Loki pulled away from the by-then thorough kiss to trail smaller kisses along the other god’s jaw, he was pleased to hear a small, almost disappointed sound from his companion’s throat.  He was even more pleased to find, as he kissed downward, that the guardian’s neck was very, very sensitive.  Tiny whimpering sounds escaped as the violet-haired god struggled to keep his composure.

The whimpers increased in volume as Loki brought the hand that he’d had at Heimdall’s back around to caress his chest through the thin mesh shirt.  He gasped softly when the hand drifted down to brush against his bare stomach, and Loki stilled for a moment, waiting for a protest.  When none came, he slid his hand over the warm, bare skin, tracing random patterns, slowly moving upwards and under the shirt.  At the same time, he began kissing downwards, licking along a collarbone before scattering kisses first over fabric, then over skin.

When he reached Heimdall’s waist he settled to his knees, looking up at the other god as he toyed idly with the laces of the leather pants.  Heimdall opened one clouded eye to regard his companion, as if to ask why he’d stopped.  Loki knew they should stop there, knew Heimdall would probably kill him if he did what he was thinking of doing, but seeing the other god flushed with desire was more than his never-strong self-restraint could take.  Knowing the answer already, he asked softly, “Do you want me to stop?”

The violet-haired god shook his head, and Loki nodded, aching at the thought of what he was about to do.  Leaning forward, he curled his tongue around one of the leather laces that made up the fly of the pants and drew it into his mouth, gently tugging until the knot came untied.  Heimdall shivered, and Loki placed his hands firmly on the other god’s hips to help steady him.  That done, he set to work fully unlacing the fly, still using lips and tongue and teeth.  The pants were quite tight, and Loki found it easiest to squirm his tongue under each lace to loosen it before taking it in his mouth to pull the rest of the way out.  Of course, this caused his tongue to brush against the hard flesh beneath with each lace, and by the time Loki was done, Heimdall was moaning quietly.

That taken care of, the trickster god peeled the leather and silk far enough back to give himself room to work.  He paused for a moment to survey the situation, then glanced up at the other deity.  Seeing the wide-eyed gaze fixed raptly on him, he bit back a grin and got to work.

He lay a trail of soft kisses from tip to base, then slowly licked back upwards, drawing a deep moan from the watcher god’s throat.  Taking pity on his companion, Loki curled his tongue around the stiff flesh and drew it into his mouth, sucking lightly before swallowing around it.

Heimdall’s inexperience and Loki’s skill soon had the violet-haired deity shuddering as he spilled himself into Loki’s waiting mouth.  The trickster god carefully swallowed, then took a handkerchief and cleaned the rest, neatly re-lacing the pants when he was done.

Having erased the signs of his handiwork, he sat on the couch and waited a little nervously for the other god to finish recovering.  Really, he’d known better, it was just that too-sexy outfit that had been tempting him since he’d first laid eyes on it.  Still, Heimdall was hardly going to accept that excuse.  He was going to have to think fast if he wanted to talk his way out of this one - especially if he ever hoped for a repeat performance.  Which he very much did.

Some minutes later, Heimdall cracked one eye open and regarded the other god narrowly.  “I hope you weren’t planning on taking things that far when we do this in front of Freya.”

Loki was caught between surprise at the unexpected response and revulsion at the thought of Freya watching such an encounter.  After a moment, he managed to reply, “No, I really wasn’t.”

“Good.  Quit looking like that, I’m not about to kill you.”

“...You’re not?”

Heimdall shook his head, blushing fiercely.  “You asked me if I wanted to stop.  I said no.  I may not be proud of that, but I’m not about to blame you for my own lack of self-control.”

Despite his relief at not having to defend his life, Loki felt inexplicably guilty at the shame in the other god’s voice.  “Maybe, but you shouldn’t blame yourself for my lack of self-control, either.  There was no reason to push things that far and I knew it.”

Even as he said it, Loki was kicking himself for not just letting it go, but the watcher god only shrugged.  “We should have set some limits beforehand.”

Loki nodded.  “I didn’t think we’d need to, but you’re right.  And I am sorry.”

“Apology accepted.  Shall we say all future rehearsals stay above the waist?  I don’t think I’d want to show Freya anything more than that anyhow.”

Loki didn’t want Heimdall showing Freya any more than that, either.   “You aren’t going to tell me to take the whole idea and shove it in the garbage?”

Heimdall smiled wryly.  “It’s still a workable idea.  Things got out of control today, but as long as we have limits, it shouldn’t happen again.”

Loki nodded, concluding that he was luckier than anyone, even a god, deserved to be.  “No, it won’t.”  

Mentally, he added, _at least not until you want it to._

*****

While Yamino had not, of course, been given all of the details of Heimdall’s current situation, he knew enough to not be terribly surprised when the violet-haired god appeared unexpectedly knocking at the back door one day.  From the Aesir’s distinctly hunted expression and slight lack of breath, Yamino could guess why Loki hadn’t given him advance notice that Heimdall was expected today.

“Won’t you come in, Heimdall-san?”  Loki’s assistant greeted the deity politely.  “Shall I assume that if Freyr or Freya comes by, I haven’t seen you?”

“Yes, thank you.  I’m sorry to arrive unannounced, but I wasn’t expecting this.”

“No need to apologize, we’re always pleased to receive visitors.  Loki-sama is in his study; if you’d like to join him, I’d be happy to bring up some tea for you both.”

Heimdall looked uncomfortable.  “I don’t want to be a bother.  If I can just hide somewhere until things calm down, that’s fine.”

“Nonsense, Heimdall-san.  I know Loki-sama will be glad to see you, and I was about to make tea anyhow.  Come now, I’ll announce you.”

Reluctantly, Heimdall followed Yamino up the stairs.

“Loki-sama, Heimdall-san stopped by for a visit.  Shall I bring up some tea?”

“Thank you, Yamino-kun, we’d appreciate that.”  Loki nodded at his unexpected guest as his butler left the room.  “Freya came looking for you, I take it?”

Heimdall nodded, standing just inside the door and looking a little uncertain.  “I didn’t know where else to hide that Freyr wouldn’t guess.”

“Well, I said you were welcome here and I meant it.  Have a seat and catch your breath, you look worn out.”

The guardian god perched on the edge of a couch.  “I’m not...not really in the mood to do any rehearsing right now.  If that’s a problem...”

Loki looked indignant.  “I assure you that it is perfectly possible for me to enjoy your company in the absence of physical contact.  You think the only reason I might want to associate with you is so that I can get my hands on you?”

Heimdall smirked a little.  “Yes.”

The trickster god shook his head.  “All right, I walked into that one.  I’m sure that we can find a non-contact pastime to amuse us.  Do you enjoy chess?”

Heimdall did, in fact, enjoy chess, and the match that followed lasted until shortly before dinnertime.  Despite a narrow loss to the trickster god, Loki didn’t have too much trouble persuading the guardian to stay for the meal (possibly due to the distinct lack of culinary skills shared by Heimdall and his housemate).  Narugami showed his usual talent for arriving just in time to bully Yamino into giving him a share, and while the thunder god was startled to see Heimdall there, he took it in his usual good-natured stride.  The meal soon devolved into the cheerful chaos that always seemed to accompany Loki, and Heimdall found it surprisingly pleasant to be a part of it.

Later that evening, Loki walked his guest to the door.  “Think Freya’s gone?”

Heimdall nodded.  “By now, I’d think so.  Thank you for letting me stay.  I actually enjoyed myself.”

Loki tactfully overlooked the ‘actually’, since it seemed more an expression of honest surprise than sarcasm.  “It was my pleasure.  I hope you’ll come by again soon, rehearsals or no.”

“I will.”  As the words left his mouth, Heimdall was a little startled to realize that he meant them.

*****

“All right, I think that’s enough for one day.”

Heimdall blinked dazedly.  “What?” 

After that first, slightly awkward rehearsal, the two gods had started back at the beginning, taking things slowly.  This was the first time they’d gotten involved enough that stopping had been difficult.

Loki coughed, hiding a smile.  “We can’t do much else without breaking the below-the-waist rule.  So I figured we should call it a day.” 

“...Oh.”  The guardian god grimaced, squirming a little as he leaned back against the desk.

Loki watched, inwardly wincing in sympathy.  “Are you all right?  You look as if you’re in pain.”

Heimdall shrugged, still shifting uncomfortably.  “It’s nothing.  I’ll be fine.”

“Well, all right, but if you need a few minutes to go take care of yourself, I understand.”

The other god looked blank for a moment, clearly not getting the reference, then blushed bright red.  “No, that won’t be necessary.”

Loki shook his head.  “You really should take better care of your needs.”  He hesitated a moment, then decided it couldn’t hurt to offer...too much, anyway.  “If you don’t like the idea of doing it yourself, would you be more comfortable with me taking care of you?”

Heimdall gave him a startled look.  “What?”

“Well, you don’t seem quite at ease with yourself, and you’re plainly in some physical discomfort, so I thought you might like some help.  I know we said nothing below the waist, but this wouldn’t be part of the rehearsals, just a quick satisfaction of a basic need.”

There was a brief pause, followed by a blush and a mumbled, “...All right.”

If Loki was surprised by the acquiescence, he didn’t show it.  Instead, he moved to stand behind the watcher god, wrapping his arms around the slim waist and brushing violet hair aside to kiss a particularly sensitive spot he’d found on the back of Heimdall’s neck.  The guardian shivered and arched against him, causing Loki to clench his teeth against the moan that rose to his lips.  Wasting no time, the trickster unfastened the other god’s jeans and slipped his hand inside, drawing a soft cry of need from his companion. 

Despite severe temptation to the contrary, Loki told himself sternly that this was business, not pleasure.  He was just helping out the other god, since Heimdall wasn’t comfortable doing so himself.  There would be plenty of time for more later.

*****

“Better?”

Heimdall nodded, still blushing.  “Thank you.”

Loki shrugged.  “It was nothing.  But you know, Heimdall, you shouldn’t feel embarrassed about your body’s needs.  It’s not weakness and it’s not wrong, it’s just biology.  Certain actions trigger specific responses, no matter who’s involved.  You’re flesh and blood, you have the same needs and desires as anyone.”

The watcher god scowled at his companion.  “You seem to be fine.”

Loki grinned ruefully.  “If by ‘fine’, you mean ‘not currently experiencing a painfully insistent ache just south of my waist’, then you would be wrong.  I’m just better at hiding it because I’ve had more experience doing so.”

Heimdall gave the other god a sidelong look.  “I’d wouldn’t have guessed that someone like you comes up short all that often, even when going after someone like me.”

Loki sighed in exasperation.  “I’m not ‘going after’ anyone here.  I offered to help you out because you were in pain and clearly too uncomfortable to do anything about it yourself.  But this isn’t about me trying to seduce you,” he lied.  “This is still about us trying to act enough like we’re involved so that Freya will believe we’re a couple and leave us alone.”

The violet-haired deity gave his companion an unreadable look.  “Even if we forget that from time to time?”

“Heimdall, can’t you be even a little easy with me?  You may have ice in your veins, but I don’t.  Do I consider you attractive?  Of course, who wouldn’t?  Do I desire you?  I’ll admit I do.  Am I taking advantage of you?  No, I am not!  When have I ever failed to stop when you wanted me to?  When have I ever failed to give you a chance to back out of something you weren’t comfortable with?  When have I ever been anything but gentle, patient, and understanding with you?”

The guardian dropped his gaze.  “No, you’re right,” he said softly.  “I shouldn’t blame you for things that are as much my own fault as yours.”

Loki reached out to brush his fingers against the visible side of his companion’s face.  “And why must anything be anyone’s fault?  What have we done that’s so terrible that blame must be assigned?”  The white god shook his head silently, not meeting the other’s sad green eyes.  “Heimdall, listen to me.  There is nothing bad or wrong or shameful about anything that you and I have done.  You shouldn’t ever feel shame or anger or disgust with yourself, not for this.  All right?”

The watcher nodded, his single eye still downcast.  Sighing softly, the trickster pulled him into his arms, and just held him.

*****

“You know, Loki, I’ve been thinking...”

“Really?  I thought I’d noticed smoke coming out your ears.”  The trickster god ducked a halfhearted swat.  “Sorry, you were saying?”

“Idiot.  I was wondering if I should start taking a more active role in the rehearsals.”

Loki blinked.  “How so?”

“Well, whenever we rehearse, I’m not really doing much aside from kissing.  And I never take the initiative, I only react to what you do.  I was thinking it might look better if I were a little more...involved, I guess.”

Loki carefully kept his face blank, while cheering inwardly.  “That may be true, but if it’s something you’re not comfortable with, I think we’re all right where we are.”

The watcher shrugged.  “You did say that I should welcome your attentions.  I’d look a lot more welcoming if I wasn’t just standing there like a wooden post.”

Loki decided not to mention that Heimdall hardly qualified as unresponsive, or that he felt his attentions had been receiving quite a warm welcome, all things considered.  “If you want to experiment, I have no objections.  Did you want to start off one-way before we try anything interactive?”

“What do you mean?”

“I thought you might like to just explore me while I hold still.  That way you can get comfortable touching me without having to worry about what I’m doing.  We can always move on to something more later if you decide you want to.”

“That sounds good.”

“All right, then.”  Loki stood patiently as Heimdall approached him.  After a slight hesitation, cautious fingers traced lightly along the line of his jaw.  Loki clenched his fists, hoping the watcher wouldn’t notice.  If ever there were a test of his self-control, this would be it.

Soft lips touched his cheek almost shyly, then moved downward to caress his neck, growing bolder at the whimper that escaped the trickster god.  Slender hands wandered across his chest, first over the shirt, then pausing briefly before undoing the buttons with surprising deftness and slipping underneath.  Loki shuddered as the other god tentatively licked at his throat, coincidentally catching one of his most sensitive spots.  He would not lose control, he would not...  Then clawed fingers raked down his stomach, ever so lightly, and he gasped.

“Heimdall, you’re killing me.”

The violet-haired god looked up at the soft groan, regarding the other deity curiously.  Loki really did look as if he were in pain.  “Do you want me to stop?”

“No...really not.”

The guardian of Bifrost tilted his head, considering.  “Do you want me to take care of you?”

“What?”  Desire-clouded green eyes snapped open with shock

Heimdall shrugged.  “You always take care of me.  It doesn’t quite seem fair to make you take care of yourself all the time as well.”

The trickster god’s mouth opened and closed a few times before he managed to get any words out.  “Look, being fair isn’t...I know you wouldn’t want...you don’t have to...”  He trailed off into a moan as the watcher smirked and cupped a hand to his need. 

“But you want me to, don’t you?”

Unable to argue, Loki’s last coherent thought before his brain shut down was that clearly, Heimdall had been spending far too much time with him lately.

*****

“Loki, is there something wrong with me?”

The trickster god looked up, startled.  “Of course not!  Why do you ask?”

Heimdall shifted.  “Well, because I’m so uncomfortable with myself at times.”

“With your body?”

The guardian nodded.  “None of the other gods has any problem with taking the occasional lover.  Even Freyr’s had them.”  He shuddered.  “Though I wish he hadn’t told me about it.”

Loki couldn’t help but grin at that, but it faded quickly at the serious expression on the watcher’s face.  “If you don’t mind me asking, was the decision never to take a lover yours, or was it something that was discouraged because of your post?”

Heimdall shrugged.  “No one ever specifically told me not to, but I always got the impression that it would be frowned on.  Not surprising, when you consider the distraction and vulnerability issues.  But then I never wanted one, so it never really came up.”

“Well, I’d say there’s half your problem right there.  If you’ve always associated intimacy with disapproval, then of course you’re going to feel awkward with it.  As far as the rest goes, that can be chalked up to simple inexperience.”  He regarded the other god thoughtfully.  “Are you still uncomfortable kissing me?”

The violet-haired deity blinked, a little thrown by the apparent change of topic.  “No, not anymore.”

“But you were when we started out.”  The watcher nodded, beginning to understand.  “So, it sounds like you need to work on becoming familiar with yourself.  And we’ve made some progress - the rehearsals have taught you a few things about what feels good and what doesn’t, right?”  Heimdall nodded again, and Loki grinned.  “Take it from an old hand, nothing’s ever as awkward the second time you do it.  Or the third or fourth, for that matter.  With a little practice and a bit of experimentation, you’ll be surprised how easily you become comfortable with yourself.”

“But how am I supposed to practice?  Other than the rehearsals, that is.”

Loki blinked.  “Just do it on your own, that’s how most people learn about themselves.”

The guardian blushed.  “I can’t do that!”

“Why not?”

“Because...well...it’d just be weird.  I wouldn’t be able to...knowing it was me...”

The trickster nodded.  “That can be a little difficult at first.  Have you considered pretending it’s someone else?”

The other god blushed again, shaking his head.  “There isn’t anyone I would want to...”

Of all the things Heimdall had said to him over the course of their scheme, Loki reflected ironically, those few words hurt his ego more than anything else.  “Well, I tell you what.  Why don’t we try something, you and I?  If you decide it’s not something you’re okay with, we can stop.”

The watcher looked warily interested.  “What do you have in mind?”

“That depends.  Do you trust me?”

Heimdall considered for a moment, then nodded.

“Ok then, take your shirt off and lie down on the couch.”

The violet-haired god did as he was instructed, looking expectantly at his companion.  Loki knelt beside the couch, reaching over to gently run a fingertip over Heimdall’s eyelid, closing the crimson eye.  That the deity didn’t flinch at the touch was, to Loki, more than anything else they’d done proof that he did indeed trust the other god.

“Keep it closed,” he whispered, leaning over to kiss him lightly.  The trick, he reflected, was going to be to keep the other deity focused on what he was feeling, to distract him from thinking too hard about what was happening.

The trickster god took Heimdall’s hand, bringing it to his mouth and covering it in kisses.  “You know, in case no one has ever told you, you’re really quite attractive.”  He laced his fingers with the clawed ones, joining their hands together.  “You have such a beautiful face, and I must confess a weakness for your body type.”  He punctuated his words with kisses, scattered at random across soft skin.  Slowly, he brought their joined hands down to caress the watcher’s chest.  Heimdall shivered, but said nothing.  “Most people like their men heavily muscled, but I prefer a more lean...” he led their hands down the smooth chest to the flat stomach, “...lithe build, sleek and slender.  You’re perfect.”  He curved their fingers, causing the claws to rake delicately over the sensitive skin.  Heimdall gasped, and Loki grinned.  “Feels good, doesn’t it?  The first time you did that to me I nearly lost it right then and there.  Do you remember that?  That was when you were touching me for the first time.  I have to say, having to holding still while you explored me was far and away the hardest thing I’d ever done.”

The watcher god was whimpering quietly by this point, shifting restlessly on the couch.  Seeing that his companion wasn’t about to voice any protests, Loki decided to take things further.  He detangled their fingers, continuing to guide Heimdall’s hand over his body for a moment before leaning over to murmur in his ear, “Don’t stop.”

The command was obeyed blindly, and Loki reached down to unfasten the guardian’s jeans, carefully working pants and underwear down over the other god’s hips.  Grinning mischievously, he blew lightly over the exposed skin, causing Heimdall to cry out pleadingly.  “Loki!”

Still grinning, the trickster god shook his head.  “Not this time, Heimdall.  If you want it, you have to take it.”  He was pleased to see the other god’s hand already slipping unconsciously downward.  “That’s it, just a little further now.  It’s so good and you want it so much, don’t you?”

Heimdall moaned softly and moved his hand the rest of the way to wrap around his aching flesh.  Loki bit back a groan, unable to stop his own hand from sliding inside his pants.  Watching the other god touch himself had to be the hottest thing he’d ever been privileged to witness.  Breathlessly, he murmured suggestions and encouragement as the pace sped up.  “That’s right, careful of the claws now...try slowing down a bit, it’s better if you draw it out...yes, just like that...oh, it’s so good, isn’t it...so close...”

With a last soft cry, Heimdall shuddered, his hand tightening as he reached his completion.  Loki followed suit, grimacing as he realized he’d made a mess of his pants.  Grabbing a box of deliberately convenient tissues, he began cleaning them both up.

Heimdall cracked open his eye and regarded the trickster god for a moment.  Feeling his gaze, Loki turned and smiled.  “How are you feeling?”

“Good.” 

“Glad to hear it.  Not as awkward as you thought it would be?”

“Nowhere near.”  Noticing the state of his companion’s clothes, the watcher god raised an eyebrow.  “Taking care of yourself at the same time, I take it?”

“Well, yes...does that bother you?”

Heimdall studied him thoughtfully.  “You enjoyed watching me?”

“Ah...well...”  Up until now, the watcher’s inexperience had kept the usually observant god from fully realizing the effect he had on Loki, but it looked like the trickster’s luck had just run out.  Either Heimdall would be angry, or...

The guardian gave his companion a wicked smirk and stretched luxuriously.  Loki’s jaw tightened.  Heimdall grinned, clearly enjoying the effect he was having on the redheaded god.  “Perhaps I should be flattered?”

Loki growled.  It was just his luck that Heimdall would decide to become a tease. He stood, moving to sit at the far end of the couch.  Heimdall started to grin, taking this as a challenge, but the grin faded as he saw the other deity was serious.

“New rule.  You do not tease me.  Not unless and until I decide otherwise.  Understood?”  The watcher god frowned, about to argue, but Loki shook his head.  “Listen to me, Heimdall.  I’m glad that you’re comfortable enough with yourself, and with me, to tease me a little.  Really, I am.”  He smiled ruefully at his companion.  “But the fact is, my self-control’s not up to that particular challenge.  It’s hard enough for me as it is - if you tempt me, then we’re both going to end up somewhere that we’re just not ready to be right now.”

Heimdall nodded slowly.  “Yes, I suppose that’s probably true.  I hadn’t thought of that.” He frowned, nearly sulking.  “But I was having fun.”

Loki laughed at the disappointed expression on the other god’s face.  “I noticed.  But don’t worry, we’ll get there.”

*****

“Hey, Loki.”

“Heimdall, come on in.”  Loki set down his book to greet his friend.  “How are you doing this fine day?”

“Eh.  Freya came looking for me.  Again.”

“Ah, and here I thought you might be visiting just because you like me.”

“Not at the moment.”  The guardian glared at his host.  “I thought you said she had a short attention span.”  Despite the annoyance in Heimdall’s voice, his scowl was mild enough that Loki knew he wasn’t really angry.

“Don’t worry, she only gets like this when she’s on the hunt.  Once she knows you’re not fair game she’ll look elsewhere quickly enough.”

“Ok, so when are we going to be putting this plan into action?  I don’t mind coming over here unannounced every now and again, but I keep worrying that sooner or later she’s going to manage to corner me and try to molest me.”

“Well, we certainly can’t have that.  The only person allowed to molest you is me.”  Heimdall raised an eyebrow at the trickster god, who held up his hands.  “Sorry, I couldn’t resist.  Really, it’s up to you.  Anytime you feel you’re ready, I’m willing.”

“We’ve practiced enough to be ready for anything,” the watcher pointed out.

“In private, yes.  That’s a little different from performing in front of an audience.  You’re ready to do this with Freya watching?”

Heimdall shuddered.  “Ugh.  I don’t like it...but then, I never did.  I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.”

“If it helps, I’ll keep you focused.  See, the trick to this kind of thing is to forget that the audience is there and just concentrate on what you’re doing.”

“Do I want to know how you know that?”

“No, you really don’t.”

“All right, then.  Are we agreed?”

Loki nodded.  “Ready or not, here we come.”

*****

“She’s coming!”

Loki looked up sharply at the sudden entrance of the other god.  “She knows?”

Heimdall nodded, still somewhat breathless.  “She’s less than five minutes behind me.”  Looking a little panicked, he paced to the window and back.  It was perhaps the most animated Loki had ever seen him.

“All right, then.”  The guardian deity half-turned at the trickster’s words, only to be met with a ferocious kiss that quickly converted adrenaline into passion.  Within seconds, Heimdall had forgotten why and for whom they were performing...or even that they were performing at all.

That is, until the door burst open.

“Hiiiiiiii, Lo...”  Freya’s cheerful greeting trailed to a dead stop as she bounced into the room.  The two gods in front of her stood frozen in an unmistakable pose; Loki had Heimdall pushed up against the desk, one hand down the back of the watcher god’s undone jeans, and the other at the back of his head, holding him still for a thoroughly passionate kiss.  It didn’t help that both of their shirts were discarded on the floor, or that Loki’s back was covered with scratch marks.

Heimdall found he didn’t have to feign the yelp of embarrassment or the vivid blush as he dove for his abandoned shirt.  Loki, however, merely raised an eyebrow at the dumbfounded goddess.

“What part of ‘Loki doesn’t want to be disturbed right now’ didn’t you understand, Freya?”

The Vanir sputtered for a moment before finding her voice.  “You selfish thing, you!  You could have any woman in all the nine worlds, how dare you start taking the men, too!  I always suspected you were out to steal all of the good-looking ones, but really!  Leave some for the rest of us, you spoiled brat!”

Loki looked exasperated.  “Freya, really!  This is a little different from toys or candy.”

Freya looked skeptical.  “Oh, really?  And when did you get so sensitive?  Usually you just say, ‘too bad, I got here first, maybe you can have him when I’m done’.”  She eyed the suddenly-nervous Heimdall speculatively.  “Speaking of which, can I have him when you’re done?”

“Absolutely not!  He’s not some trinket to be passed around, he’s a person!  Stop talking about him like he’s a piece of property.”

Freya’s eyes narrowed.  “Unlike all of your other lovers, who might as well have been for all that you cared?”

Heimdall groaned inwardly as Loki sputtered indignantly, wondering why he’d ever trusted the other god.

“Unless...”  Freya giggled, making both gods extremely uneasy.  “Don’t tell me that the infamous heartbreaker Loki has finally found someone to be sweet on?”

“What?”  Loki yelped, as Heimdall turned a violent shade of crimson.

Freya grinned and continued in a sing-song tease.  “It’s true, isn’t it?  I would never have thought!  And with Heimdall, no less - I knew the two of you were getting along remarkably well, given your background, but I had no idea!  I can’t wait to tell everyone!”

Heimdall glared murderously at Loki, and Loki glared murderously at Freya.  “Freya, if you so much as breathe one word of this to anyone, I swear I will seal you in one of my mirrors and leave you there for the next ten thousand years!”

Freya smirked and cooed at the angry god.  “Aww, how adorable, you don’t want to embarrass your sweetheart.”

“Freya!”

The goddess snickered.  “Why, Loki, I didn’t know you even remembered how to blush.”  Loki growled menacingly, and Freya held up her hand in surrender.  “All right, all right.  You’re cute, so I’ll humor you.  But really, you shouldn’t try to hide it forever.  He might think you’re ashamed of him.”

The trickster god snarled.  “Freya, get out of my house.  And next time, consider that when I say I don’t want to be disturbed, I mean it.”

Freya pouted.  “You wouldn’t consider letting me watch?  The two of you looked so good together...”

Heimdall made a small, horrified noise, and Loki’s already-frayed temper snapped abruptly.  “OUT!” he roared. 

The Vanir obliged, still giggling, and Loki dropped onto the couch and buried his face in his hands.  “Remind me again why I thought this was a good idea.”

Heimdall snorted, sitting next to him.  “I’d rather you remind me how you managed to convince me it was a good idea.”

Loki glared at the other god.  “Thank you, that was comforting.”

The guardian shrugged.  “Comfort was never my strong suit.”  Loki sighed, and the other god continued, “Still, despite being painfully humiliating, I’d have to say it worked.  She did promise to leave us alone.”

“Yes, I suppose we can consider it a success, though not among my better ones.”  The two gods looked at each other hesitantly, then Loki leaned forward to give Heimdall a kiss on the cheek.  “You’ve been amazing, you know.  Incredibly gracious about all this and far more tolerant than you should have been.  Thank you.”

Heimdall shrugged, a little awkwardly.  “It was your idea.  I should be thanking you.”  He gave Loki a sidelong glance.  “Perhaps I should continue to visit, to keep up the pretense of us as a couple...”

Loki brightened.  “Yes, that would probably be best. And maybe...”  he attempted to look as innocent as possible, “it might not be a bad idea to still rehearse occasionally, to stay in practice.  Just in case, of course.”

Heimdall gazed narrowly at the other god for a long moment, and Loki was about to resign himself to another ego-bruise, when suddenly the watcher god gave him a wryly knowing smile.

“Well, just in case...”


End file.
